Reports of frozen residential and business water service lines have increased this week. Frozen service lines are being experienced through Charles City and the surrounding area. These occurrences are caused by unusually deep frost lines which are in part a result of the prolonged extreme temperatures experience this winter.
As a precaution, the city continues to urge residents to monitor the temperature fo the water from an inside cold faucet nearest to the water meter. If the measured temperature is below 40 degrees, you should open a cold water faucet to a slow stream. By keeping the water moving, you should prevent the service line from freezing. This information should be used only as a guideline with additional judgment exercised for each individual situation.
It is very important to understand that even as air temperatures continue to improve,the frost line also continues to advance deeper into the ground. This will occur until there is enough spring thaw to stop the frost line from advancing. While difficult to predict, this could take between six and eight weeks, depending on the weather conditions for the remainder of the winter season.